Land O' Lakes cancer patients can now receive proton therapy, a precision radiation treatment that targets tumors while sparing surrounding tissue, without leaving the Tampa Bay area.

Moffitt Cancer Center formally dedicated the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation Proton Center at Speros on July 23, during a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the 775-acre biotech campus off Ridge Road, just east of the Suncoast Parkway. The center's first patient was scheduled for treatment on July 27.

Inside the new facility

The facility houses a ProteusONE proton therapy system made by Belgian firm IBA. The single-room system, smaller than older multi-room proton installations, carries a typical installed cost between $45 million and $55 million including a multi-year maintenance contract.

"We are bringing the most advanced technology, the ProteusONE, in the Tampa Bay area," Dr. Kosj Yamoah, chair of Moffitt's radiation oncology department, said at the July 23 dedication. "We're going to be able to treat people within Florida and across the world with cutting-edge technology that is destined to treat cancer effectively."

A $15 million naming gift from Best Buy founder Dick Schulze and the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation made the center possible.

A personal mission

Yamoah's push to bring proton therapy to Tampa Bay carries personal weight. His young son died after battling a rare brain cancer, and the family traveled across the country multiple times for proton treatment. In a July 17 interview with WFTS, Yamoah said the experience of being uprooted from loved ones to get the best care "can be very disruptive."

Among the first patients at the new center is Alexander Shaffer, who has fought cancer since age 5½ and is now battling a rare brain tumor. His mother, Cindy Shaffer, told WFTS on July 17 that the Land O' Lakes location is "only an hour from our house as opposed to the other options were Orlando and Jacksonville."

What's next for Speros

The proton center sits within the 120,000-square-foot Moffitt outpatient facility that opened to patients on Jan. 19. The broader Speros campus, backed by more than $1 billion in capital investment, is projected to employ thousands of researchers, health care workers and other staff when fully built out.

The next phase of construction, a research and innovation center, is scheduled to open in October. Speros projects completion of the full first phase, including the 250,000-square-foot Moffitt Discovery and Innovation Center and a Cryogene biorepository, in 2028.